Cooling towers



1968 A. E. MURRAY 3,395,515

COOLING TOWERS I Filed March 15, 1965 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEN'TQ21" sdm I 5%,W, fiml umg A. E. MURRAY COOLING TOWERS Aug. 6, 1968 3 Sheets$heet 2 Filed March 15, 1965 A'T'rcaeuivi A. E. MURRAY COOLING TOWERS Aug. 6, 1968 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 15, 1965 2; MIVKMI ATTQRMEV 5,

United States Patent 3,395,515 COOLING TOWERS Alfred E. Murray, Leeds, England, assignor to William Stanley Lovely, London, England Filed Mar. 15, 1965, Ser. No. 439,828 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Mar. 16, 1964, 10,940/ 64 7 Claims. (Cl. 55-257) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A cooling tower for cooling warm water by direct contact with air having a plurality of columns arranged in concentric circular rows with pairs of parallel beams extending between adjacent rows. Support brackets are mounted at each side of each column and tie means secure together the juxtaposed ends of the beams in any one of the brackets. Packing sheets are supported at their opposite ends upon the beams.

This invention relates to cooling towers, for example, towers having the form of a circular structure of concrete or the like, containing within its interior a multiplicity of generally upright sheets over which warm water flows downwardly and is cooled by the exposure of a large surface area of this water to a current of atmospheric air. Such cooling towers are extensively used in conjunction with electricity generating and other industrial plants.

More particularly the invention relates to structure supporting such upright sheets within a cooling tower.

The sheets, which can be fiat or corrugated and are customarily made of asbestos-cement, are supported, with intermediate spacers between the sheets which are arranged in closely-spaced vertical planes. Only the ends of the sheets are supported by supporting structure.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved support structure for the upright sheets of a cooling tower.

An embodiment of a cooling tower in accordance with the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a quadrant of the cooling tower with certain parts omitted;

FIGURE 2 is a section on the line IIII of FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view, with certain parts omitted, looking in the direction of the arrow A in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is an elevation of a support column of the cooling tower in accordance with the invention;

FIGURES 5, 6 and 7 are respectively sections on the lines VV, VIVI, VII-VII, of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary section through the juxtaposed ends of support beams of the cooling tower; and

FIGURE 9 is an elevation partly in section of a detail.

Referring now to the drawings, the cooling tower has an outer shell 1 (see FIGS. 2 and 9) of conventional construction and support structure which serves to support two layers 2, 3 of corrugated asbestos-cement sheets.

In each layer, the sheets are arranged to form concentric rings, the sheets in each ring of the lower layer 3 being supported at their ends by a radially outer ring of beams 6 and by a concentric radially inner ring of beams 7, which in turn are supported on an outer annular row of columns 8 and an inner annular row of columns 9.

Although the term ring has been used to describe 3,395,515 Patented Aug. 6, 1968 the disposition of the side-by-side beams 6 and 7, this does not infer that the individual beams are arcuate. Strictly, the beams form a polygon, which because of the large number employed approximates to a circle.

The support structure also serves to support sprayeliminating slats 14 as shown in FIGURES 2 and 3. Since only one layer of these slats is required, each slat lies in a vertical radial plane. The outer edges of the slats 14 are supported on precast corbels 15 bolted to the shell 1 of the tower and two bolts 16 and 17 (indicated by chain lines in FIGURE 3) pass through each pack of 22 slats. Spacers are provided between the slats.

An annular asbestos-cement skirt 18 depends from the lower periphery of the shell 1 and an annular blanking sheet 19 is positioned closely adjacent the radially outermost upper layer of sheets 2 (FIGURE 2). Immediately adjacent the radially innermost row of columns 9 a vertical blanking cylinder 20 extends from just below the slats 14 to a rim lying below the normal water level 21 (indicated as a broken line in FIGURE 2).

Reference will now be made to FIGURES 3 to 9, which illustrate in detail the support structure for the layers of sheets 2, 3. The vertical support columns 8 and 9 are spaced apart in rows which are themselves spaced apart, and which in the present embodiment are concentric circles but could be otherwise, such as parallel straight lines. The columns 8, 9 support the twin laterallyspaced beams 6, 7 disposed on either side of the columns instead of single beams in line of the columns as in previous proposals. Each beam 6 or 7, in turn, supports one end of the lower sheets 3, the opposite end of each sheet lying on a parallel beam 6 or 7 which is supported by a column of the next adjacent row of columns (see especially FIGURE 2). Each column therefore supports the ends of four beams, that is of two sets of twin beams.

Each column is formed integrally with two channelsection integral brackets 22, 23 extending on opposite sides thereof at the level at which the beams 6, 7 are to be supported, the channels lying parallel to one another and each being of a length suflicient to support the ends of two beams so that the beams lie alongside the column (see especially FIGURES 7 and 8). The lower part 24 of each column is formed with a plurality of elongate apertures 25 in order to reduce weight and use of material. An upper part 26 of each column extends upwardly beyond the brackets 22, 23 and is of smaller cross-section since the weight to be supported is considerably lower. At the upper extremity the column has two further integral channel-section brackets 27, 28 which carry the beams 29, 30 in turn serving to carry the spray eliminating slats 14.

As shown in detail in FIGURE 8, two ends of the beams in each channel are interconnected by ties 31 which span the upright ends of two angle rod members 32 embedded in the juxtaposed ends of the beams. The gap between the ends is filled with grouting 33. Alternatively, or additionally, since the columns are of concrete and contain reinforcing rods, one or more of these rods can be brought out into each channel 22, 23 or 27, 28 and additionally secured to the ends of the beams 6, 7.

FIGURES 5 and 6 show the reinforcing rods at two sections of the cloumn and since customary reinforcing practice is employed, these sections will not be described in detail. FIGURE 9 illustrates the manner in which an outermost column 8 is truncated and secured by a bolt 34 to the inside of the shell 1.

The use of the columns and beams as above described obviates the need for brackets on all four sides of each column, that is two brackets to support centrally-positioned beams and two brackets to carry the sheets past the column. The construction of the columns is thereby simplified and lightened and hence can be handled more readily than columns which have been employed hitherto. Such an arrangement furthermore stabilizes the upstand ing columns by providing restraint both against bending and torsion, and by reason of the sheets being supported at a distance from their vertical edges, there is less risk of sheet breakage in service.

It will be evident that this construction is ideally suited to circular-section cooling towers wherein the columns are spaced apart in rows forming concentric circles, two adjacent columns on one circle cooperating with two adjacent columns of the next radially inner, or outer, circle to support annular layers of sheets.

The twin beams provide a simple and economical means of supporting the sheets of uniform length whose vertical edges lie on a cylindrical surface, on straight beams which are parallel to chords of that circle. To do this with a single line of beams would necessitate the use of very wide beams to ensure that the minimum length of sheet on a beam is always sufiicient for safe stressing of material of which the sheet is made. The arrangement provides, in fact, that where the layer of sheets follows a concentric ring formation, they are for the most part supported away from their vertical edges. If the sheets are in a rectangular formation, with parallel lines of supporting beams, the last-mentioned feature is achieved for every sheet equally.

The structural characteristics of the beams and columns as hereinbefore described are such as readily to suport two layers of sheets in each pack, the sheets in the upper layer lying on and being supported by a sheet in the lower layer.

I claim:

1. In a cooling tower for liquid including layers of sub stantially upright packing sheets,

a plurality of columns arranged in concentric circular rows,

pairs of laterally spaced beams extending respectively between two adjacent columns of a radially inner row, pairs of laterally spaced beams extending respectively between two adjacent columns of a next adjacent radially outer row, and

support means on said two adjacent columns of said one row and said next adjacent row supporting ends of the two pairs of beams, said ends extending alongside the respective, said column,

the packing sheets being supported at their opposite ends on the radially inner beam of a pair of beams supported by the radially outer row of columns and on the radially outer beam of a pair of beams supported by the radially inner row of columns.

2. In a cooling tower for liquids including at least one layer of substantially upright packing sheets,

a plurality of columns arranged in rows,

pairs of spaced, sideaby-side, substantially parallel beams extending respectively between adjacent columns of each row,

support brackets on each column supporting the four ends of the beams of that column, and

tie means securing together the jutaposed ends of beams supported in any one of the brackets,

the packing sheets being supported at their opposite ends upon said parallel beams of two adjacent rows of columns.

3. In a cooling tower for liquids including at least one layer of substantially upright packing sheets,

a plurality of columns arranged in concentric substantially circular rows, each column having an upper and a lower end,

a pair of spaced substantially parallel beams extending between adjacent columns of each row,

means on each column supporting the beams,

an outer shell,

and means securing the upper ends of the outermost row of columns to the outer shell,

the packing sheets being supported at their opposite ends by the beams.

4. In a cooling tower for liquids including at least one layer of substantially upright packing sheets,

a plurality of vertical columns arranged in concentric circular rows, each column having .an upper and a lower end,

a pair of spaced substantially parallel beams extending between adjacent columns of any one row,

channel-section support brackets disposed on either side of each column and carrying ends of the beams,

an upper pair of spaced substantially parallel beams extending between the upper end of adjacent columns of each row,

channel-section support brackets disposed at the upper end of each column at either side thereof and carrying ends of the upper beams,

spray-eliminating slats supported by the upper pairs of beams,

and the tie rods securing together juxtaposed ends of the beams in the brackets.

5. In a cooling tower for liquids including at least one layer of packing sheets,

a plurality of columns arranged in rows,

pairs of horizontally-spaced beams extending respectively between adjacent columns of each row and contiguous pairs of beams of adjacent rows being parallel to one another, and

support means including a bracket on each column supporting four beam ends alongside the column,

an angle rod member carried by each end of each beam, and

a tie member spanning the angle rod members of juxtaposed ends of two beams supported in said bracket,

the opposite ends of the packing sheets being supported by the beams along the whole length of the beams including the ends thereof extending alongside the columns.

6. In a cooling tower of circular section having a plurality of packing sheets over which liquid to be cooled can flow,

a plurality of spaced reinforced concrete columns arranged in circular rows, each column having an upper and a lower end,

a plurality of pairs of horizontal beams, each pair extending between adjacent columns of each row, a plurality of pairs of support brackets, each pair being integral with one of the columns, one bracket of each pair being disposed on the radially outer side of the column and the other being disposed on the radially inner side of the column, and each bracket supporting the ends of two beams in juxtaposed relationship and alongside the column.

7. In a cooling tower according to claim 6, an outer shell of circular cross-section,

a plurality of bolts securing the upper ends of the outermost row of columns to the outer shell,

a plurality of spray-eliminating slats,

a plurality of upper pairs of beams supporting the sprayeliminating slats,

a plurality of upper support brackets, each pair being integral with the upper end of one of the columns, one bracket of each pair being disposed on the radially outer side of the column and the other being disposed on the radially inner side of the column, and each upper bracket supporting the ends of two upper beams in juxtaposed relationship and alongside the column,

tie means securing together the juxtaposed ends of the beams in each bracket, and

grouting securing the ends of the beams in each bracket.

Gkeferences on following page) 3,395,515 5 6 References Cited OTHER REFERENCES TE STATES PATENTS The Industrial Cooling Tower, McKelvey and Brooke,

1 0/1938 Elmer 261-403 Elsevier Publishing Company, New York, N.Y., 1959, p.

5/1939 Coey. 5 354 relied on.

8/1952 Park et a1.

6/ 1959 Baker et al 55-257 RONALD R. WEAVER, Primary Examiner.

1/ 1966 Burchardt et a1. 

